“If you believe that, then why the hell are you here at all Carl?” spat Grayell furiously. “Sure, we’ve taken out Luminal ships before. And we all know what happens — they come straight back — the exact same ships, over and over.”
“It’s only you saying they’re the same ones. No-one knows for sure.”
“I know dammit! I’ve seen the source! If we waste our one chance by detonating the Defiance, then we will have achieved nothing! We kill a few ships, and in a week they will have all returned!”
“Well, I say we take the chance while we have it! We signed up to follow you Grayell, because you were the best fighter — no-one would argue that back in the day. But, maybe the strain of being leader has made you over-cautious, made you lose sight of what needs to be done. You’re fixating on one thing way up ahead, when our one chance to end this war might just be slipping away!
“All we’ve done so far is run — I say it’s time to take the fight to them!”
A few murmurs of approval rippled through the crowd.
“This discussion is over Carl,” said Mellarnne getting to his feet as Grayell seemed to shrink inward under the barrage of Ransome’s words.
But still Ransome went on, stepping out of the crowd to confront them, visibly growing in confidence.
“I don’t know Grayell, maybe you’ve lost your nerve. You run if you want, but the most of us are here to fight.” He paused as though considering the cost of his next words, then continued, “The Ghost-Runners has no place for cowards.”
“Don’t you dare talk about my father like that!”
Ryann found himself on his feet, stepping angrily towards the big man.
“Or what?” hissed Ransome, turning to confront him. “What the hell are you doing here anyway? I thought this was supposed to be a meeting for senior officers — you couldn’t get childcare or something Grayell?”
Ryann went to close with him, his fists clenched, but he felt a heavy hand dragging him back.
“Leave it Ryann,” muttered Grayell, his composure seemingly regained. “Don’t mind Carl, he’s a good mechanic. Just not too bright. He thinks that blowing himself and the rest of us up is the way to win the war. Well, thankfully, for the rest of us, and our families aboard the Defiance, you’re not in charge Carl. I give the orders, and it’s your job to listen, or we can happily drop you off at the next moon we pass.
“I’ve got as much reason to hate the Lumina as any of us that have lost our home-worlds, our friends — our families. The Lumina have burned everything in their path, and they won’t stop until there’s nothing left to burn. That’s why I know that when we take down these monsters, we have to end it, once and for all.
“This war began at the source, and it will end at the source. And when we light up the Defiance there won’t be a single Lumina left standing!”
By the time Grayell had finished his impassioned speech he was almost shouting, his eyes wide and staring with rage at Carl Ransome. The man seemed to visibly shrink beneath the barrage of Grayell’s words, and a great cheer of support went up from the remaining officers.
Slowly, Grayell turned to appraise each of them with a grim smile, before sinking back down into his chair. When he next spoke, all sign of his former dark mood was gone. “Thank you everybody, the show’s over now. Get to your stations, and the very best of luck to us all.”
To Ryann’s relief, he could feel the change in mood amongst the officers; Ransome was looking around as though for support, but the moment had passed and the momentum swung back to Grayell.
The remaining crowd began to file out, and Carl Ransome was a crestfallen island as the tide washed around him. But, even as he went to follow the last of the officers from the room, the big man couldn’t resist one parting shot:
“You know, I never knew whether I could trust you Grayell — I mean, it’s your word isn’t it? All of this — everyone here putting their lives on the line. And for what? Some hallucination you had twenty-five years ago?
“A soldier has to take the decisive shot when the moment comes. We have the payload and we have the enemy in position — we won’t get another chance like this!
“If you don’t have the guts to pull the trigger on this one Grayell, then maybe you should step down and make way for someone who is prepared to do what has to be done.”
“Pipe down Ransome, you’re making my fists itch.”
A deep growl rolled out from the back of the half-empty room. Ryann looked around in surprise to see Anders, captain of the Marianne, reclining in his seat, his feet up on the back of the chair in front. He glowered down at the lonely figure, his dark eyes burning from the shadows of his craggy brow.
For a moment, Ransome looked ready to confront Anders. Then, thinking better of it, he turned quickly, storming off towards the exit.
“You’re throwing away a chance to win this damn war!” he spat with a final, pointed stare towards Ryann. And then he was gone, leaving the room heavy with an oppressive silence.
“Okay, that’s it, everybody back to your stations.” Mellarnne stood, ushering the few remaining officers out of the door. There was an unsettled murmur of voices as they left, and
